Nigerian startup that stored its ‘day-to-day operational budget’ on FTX announces staff cuts  • TechCrunch

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Good morning, and welcome to another week. As I mentioned last Friday Haje The rest of us will be focusing on Twitter and FTX while he goes scuba diving. We are here to help. Mary Ann We start with a report on SoftBank’s almost $100 million investment in FTX. And with that, let’s dig in! — Christine

TechCrunch Top 3

• The FTX business has a wide reach: Tage reports on what happens to a young company that held some assets in FTX and now can’t access them due to, well, you know. Nestcoin, an African startup in web3 technology, said that it had to fire employees due to not being able access.
• This is a true comparison: People in Europe now have the opportunity to experience the joy and wonder of the Klarna price-comparison tool. Paul writes may just be a “credible alternative to Google and Amazon.”
• Oops!Bird, a micromobility business, stated to the Securities and Exchange Commission it had overstated its revenue by including unpaid customer rides. Jaclyn There are many more.

Startups and VC

At this point, we all expect our data to move pretty quickly, but there is so much of it that it’s still a headache. Quix is here to help. Mike writes. The real-time startup for data has raised $12.9 million in Series B funding. It did not use ksqlDB, Java solutions or fancy SQL-based analytical solutions. Quix is now developing Python-based event-driven applications.

We also have five more options for you:

• The show must continue: Just because FTX is having issues doesn’t mean other companies are shying away from association. Jacquelyn Reports on Joepegs NFT Marketplace, which raised $5 Million in a round led by FTX & Avalanche.
• “Adult friendships are fickle beasts”: Indeed they are, but have no fear, 222 will help you find that perfect friend who doesn’t care that you make more than they do or who “tends to be lazy,” if that’s what you’re into, Kyle writes.
• Singapore, prepare your exotic taste budsVow, an Australian-based cultured-meat company, raised $49.2 Million in Series A financing to bring its first cell-based product into Singapore’s restaurants. Christine writes.
• Spring into actionFaraday Future, an electric vehicle startup, signed a $350million financing agreement to help it overcome its financial difficulties and launch its first vehicle. Jaclyn reports.
• “The sun’s a ball of buttah”Gradient Ventures is now funding Butter with $9 million. This helps smaller food distribution companies comply with food safety regulations. Catherine writes.

Preparing for fintech’s second decade: 4 moves your firm must make now

Image credit: Emilija Manevska (opens in new window) Getty Images

Grant Easterbrook, consultant says fintech startups must be prepared for the unexpected.

• Major banks and financial service providers with loyalty programs and “super apps.”
• Emerging DeFi protocols “that can offer financial products that involve real-world assets.”
• Banking, invoicing, lending, payments, accounting packaged as “embedded financial products.”
• Multiple countries have their own Central Bank Digital Currency, or CBDC.

“Your firm will need a very strong value proposition to compete with all four types of competitors,” writes Easterbrook, who shares his ideas for navigating the next decade of fintech in a TC+ guest post.

Two more from TC+:

• See, Mom? What can layoffs teach us?Despite the fact there have been some layoffs in tech, they are still significant. Natasha M writes that even though we could see more, entrepreneur Nolan Church, who helped lead Carta’s 2020 layoffs as its chief people officer, has some perspective on Twitter’s recent layoffs.
• If VCs aren’t investing in you, who are they investing in?: That’s what Becca discusses in her latest piece that looks at all the dry powder in the VC world, and why it’s not yet being deployed.

TechCrunch+ This is our membership program which helps founders get ahead of the rest. Register here. Use code “DC” for a 15% discount on an annual subscription!

Big Tech Inc.

And just like that, VLC’s download ban in India was lifted, Manish reports. Nine months ago, the country’s electronics and IT ministry instituted the ban on the popular media playback software, something VLC worked to try to reverse, stating that the ban had been “put into place without any prior notice” and didn’t allow VLC a chance for rebuttal.

Natasha L has more on our favorite social media channel, this time writing that “Twitter is no longer fulfilling key obligations required for it to claim Ireland as its “so-called main establishment under the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation.” Can’t wait to see where this goes.

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